I know many of you are finding the heroine Rara tough to like so here’s my other reason for loving her character.
Previously, I wrote that she reminded me of Lucy in “I love Lucy.” But I guess that sitcom was way ancient for many of you, thus the reference was lost. This time, then, I’ll use a more popular personage for comparison: Emma, the eponymous heroine of Jane Austen’s novel.
Jane Austen loved her creation, Emma, but she anticipated that her readers wouldn’t enjoy her as much as she did. She famously preempted her critics by writing, “I’m going to take a heroine whom no one but myself will much like.”
When you read the first four paragraphs of the book, you’ll get why Ms. Austen predicted that Emma wouldn’t be an instant darling.
To save you from looking through your dog-eared books, I’ll post the relevant paragraphs.
Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition, seemed to unite some of the best blessings of existence; and had lived nearly twenty-one years in the world with very little to distress or vex her.
Note: the word “seemed” in this paragraph is an essential detail. Austen was warning her readers that Emma only APPEARED to be perfect. She appeared to have been blessed with everything.
She was the youngest of the two daughters of a most affectionate, indulgent father; and had, in consequence of her sister’s marriage, been mistress of his house from a very early period. Her mother had died too long ago for her to have more than an indistinct remembrance of her caresses; and her place had been supplied by an excellent woman as governess, who had fallen little short of a mother in affection.
Sixteen years had Miss Taylor been in Mr. Woodhouse’s family, less as a governess than a friend, very fond of both daughters, but particularly of Emma. Between them it was more the intimacy of sisters. Even before Miss Taylor had ceased to hold the nominal office of governess, the mildness of her temper had hardly allowed her to impose any restraint; and the shadow of authority being now long passed away, they had been living together as friend and friend very mutually attached, and Emma doing just what she liked; highly esteeming Miss Taylor’s judgment, but directed chiefly by her own.
The real evils, indeed, of Emma’s situation were the power of having rather too much her own way, and a disposition to think a little too well of herself; these were the disadvantages which threatened alloy to her many enjoyments. The danger, however, was at present so unperceived, that they did not by any means rank as misfortunes with her.
Source: Gutenberg.org.
Do you see the similarity between Emma and Rara? Their back stories, their family structures, and personality flaws are similar.
For example, Emma was beautiful, smart, and rich. In movies, she was always shown living in a lovely English manor.
In this kdrama, Rara was also beautiful, wealthy, and … well, she wasn’t mathematically inclined, but she was an accomplished pianist. Being cultured is an acceptable alternative to being clever.
Also, Emma lost her mother at a young age. She lived with her father who spoiled her. She had an older sister who was married and established in her own household, making Emma the lady of the house. Emma was raised lovingly by her governess.
As for Rara, she too had no memories of her mother. Her mother died shortly after she was born. Her father indulged her and thought the world of her. While she didn’t have a governess to watch over her, her piano teacher, Ms. Gong, was her constant companion for twenty years. It’s clear that despite Ms. Gong’s nagging her, they had a loving relationship.
Emma’s “real evils” were her being spoiled (i.e., “the power of having rather too much her own way”) and self-deluded (i.e., “a disposition to think a little too well of herself”).
And guess what Rara’s faults are?
She, too, was spoiled and self-deluded. She had a supportive father who proudly clapped for her even when she failed miserably and performed badly.
Remember this scene? In a way, this started her self-delusion. He wanted to protect her from distress so he pretended that she did well.
And remember this?
She isn’t good with sums, but she excused her shortcoming and contended that great musicians don’t need to be proficient in math as well. Cough. Cough. Many liberal arts students, great and no-so great, will agree with her sentiment. Sadly, she ignored the fact that basic math skills are necessary in daily life, to manage her finances and avoid scammers.
Do you see the similarities now between Emma and Rara?
There’s more.
The narrator of the novel “Emma” went on to say that, despite Emma’s manifest personality defects, she was blithely unaware of the negative effects of her being spoiled, self-deluded (and bossy!) on others. Only at the end would she discover the terrible mess she caused with her interference and blindness.
That’s the whole point of the novel: to show her development from cluelessness to self-awareness.
Now, I’m NOT the writer of this kdrama, but it’s obvious to me this kdrama will follow the same story arc. Seeing Rara’s character flaws in these two episodes should tell us she has a lot of growing up to do. She’s spoiled and delusional. She isn’t TOO bossy with Jun, but she certainly knows what strings to pull to get him to give in to her.
Moreover, in the book “Emma,” the theme was how the social class affected marriages. An individual’s status in the society dictated who he/she could or could not marry, and it’s customary for couples to stay within their social circles. BTW, don’t quote me on this; I’m not a Literature graduate, as you know.
Emma had social status. But she didn’t envision getting married herself. So, to indulge in her romantic fantasies, she engaged in a bit of “social engineering.” She arranged marriages of her friends and acquaintances.
Initially, her effort met with success. She was able to match her governess to an eligible widower in their neighborhood. But when she tried to match an orphan to the vicar, her trouble began. It was Mr. Knightley, an old family friend (and her future husband), who stepped in and guided her through her social blunders.
Since her father hopelessly spoiled her, it fell upon Mr. Knightley to “straighten” her out.
She had herself been first with him for many years past. She had not deserved it; she had often been negligent or perverse, slighting his advice, or even wilfully opposing him, insensible of half his merits, and quarrelling with him because he would not acknowledge her false and insolent estimate of her own—but still, from family attachment and habit, and thorough excellence of mind, he had loved her, and watched over her from a girl, with an endeavour to improve her, and an anxiety for her doing right, which no other creature had at all shared.
source: Gutenberg.org
Do you see how this relates to our kdrama?
Rara, too, was from the elite, chaebol class. Knowing that his business was floundering, her father tried to secure a marriage for her that would be her safety net should something happen to him. Rara’s groom was supposed to be her protection. But the marriage didn’t go through as planned, and Rara’s troubles started.
Fortunately, she found herself a Mr. Knightley to help her through the difficult times. There’s a slight difference, of course.
Mr. Knightley lectured Emma because he believed that if she’d only use her God-given wits correctly, then she’d do the right thing.
In Jun’s case, he lectured Rara because he believed that she could be reasoned with.
That’s how, at their first encounter at her wedding, he scolded her not to cry. “Don’t cry. Hold it. Just swallow your tears! You want to ruin your makeup and end up like me?”
She shook her head and held back her tears. He got through to her; he succeeded in making her understand.
When he discovered that she went to Eunpo to look for Dodosolsollasol, he scolded her again. “What kind of lousy plan is that? What if that person was just playing with you?” She sighed and agreed, “Gosh, I know. To be honest, I didn’t have anything to worry about when my dad was around.”
Again, he got through to her.
Then, when she woke up to find him on top of her, he warned her not to misinterpret his action, and she believed him.
Jun: Don’t get the wrong idea! It’s not —
Rara: Go put on some clothes!
Mr. Knightley was 16 years older than Emma so it was natural that she regarded him as her mentor. But Jun and Rara were the same age. Rara listened to him because she recognized that he was a sensible guy.
Finally —
I’m not claiming that the writer of this kdrama consciously evoked “Emma.” She may or may not. Who knows where she gets her inspiration?
I’m saying that “Emma” is popular archetype that has generated remakes and adaptations, and has influenced a lot of romance writers. Like Jane Austen said, at the heart of the tale is a heroine whom no one would find lovable at first impression but would eventually end as one of her most memorable and beloved characters.
That’s why I’m giving this writer, and Rara, a chance to grow in this kdrama. 🙂
The writer wrote Shopping King Louie. A rich boy educated in a castle in France because his grandma heard a prediction saying that he will die in Korea (or something like this) and never worked or done anything. When he returns in Korea, he had a car accident making him amnesic and homeless. He meets the FL who had to come in Seoul because her brother disapeared. Both of them start to live together and the ML must learn to be independant :p
DDSSLLS is kinda the same with gender reversal. I guess the writer likes this plot.
The Emma reference is perfect packumule!! Wow and yes we can’t be completely sure that’s what the writer intended to do but now I can see it like that. Emma is actually one of my favourite characters and so it’s weird that I dislike Rara a lot but I just didn’t like that she was so dependent on men all around her. I’m guessing like Emma she may take Jun’s feelings for granted or it’s also like clueless (Emma remake) where she sees him as a brother figure and someone by her side and then gets jealous when someone else looks like she’s Better for him. I keep forgetting Jun is a secret Chaebol so he probably has some arranged fiancée too somewhere as well but that’s just my theory. Thank you Packmule this analysis was brilliant now I look forward to anticipating Rara’s self awareness
😂 I was debating whether I should compare CCGGAAG with “Emma” starring Romola Garai or “Clueless” with Alicia Silverstone.
Same here. I like “Emma.”
In all honesty, I like Emma a tiny bit better than Lizzie Bennet. She’s so sure of herself, so misguided and so totally wrong, that her comeuppance is hilarious. She deserved to be taken down a peg. And remember that cringe moment at the Box Hill Party? Oooh! She was a Mean Girl there.
And yet, I can’t really hate on Emma. Because I get why she was snubbing Jane Fairfax (who obviously would make a superior rival if she wasn’t poor) and why she was put out when Mr Knightley was favoring others (she knew she was the apple of his eyes).
I’m like Mr Knightley who could only grit his teeth and clench his fist at her cluelessness. Mr Knightley was the model of forbearance.
Anyway, that’s how I see this CCGGAAG. To me, Rara is like Lucy in the way that she was always needing money, and Jun to help her out. Lucy was always thinking of get-rich-quickly schemes which drove her husband batty. The poor guy!
But “Emma” is probably the better way to frame the story.
And mind you, Rara really only wants to be dependent on Jun. She’s really only shameless with him. 😂 That doctor guy gave her a couple of openings to ask for help, but she didn’t bite. She didn’t want to confide her troubles.
She was “selectively” shameless.
Kinda like Emma again. Everybody thought Emma was perfect. She was always praised as a do-gooder and elegant lady. Her dad, her governess, her governess’ new husband, Jane’s aunt, all were too eager to praise her every move. Only Mr Knightley refrained from complimenting her and continued lecturing her to become better.
Here, in this kdrama, Jun nags her, and tells her no. But he softens his reprimand by taking her out on the bike and washing her hair. 😂
A great analogy, @pm3! Ra Ra has certain innocence about her which makes it difficult to dislike her.
I’m not familiar with Emma but I know Clueless 😂
Anyway I’ve seen episode 1 and 2 and I don’t know why but I was 😂 so much when she pretended to play the piano when the girl and her Mom first came to the ward. Then Jun said to stop because she looked possessed. 😁
From that epilogue, the last pic of the guy looks like Jun but of course I’m not sure. But seriously, I don’t know if there’s a guy that would do the things that Jun did for Ra-Ra 😁 What a guy! He did look handsome while washing her hair 😉
I’ll keep watching because I want to know who DDSSLLS is. ☺️
Let’s not talk about Mimi, the cutest puppy (I don’t know dog breeds) ever! I hope she’s ok. 🥰
I enjoyed “Clueless” but I can’t remember a lot of the details now. I don’t think it would be possible to film a movie like that in current times. It wouldn’t be “politically correct.” First, she can’t date her older stepbrother (statutory rape?) and second, her sidekick was black (racist?). Sigh.
Yes, I wondered what happened to Mimi.
Yes, when he shampooed her hair, I fell for him. I hate that feeling of greasy, scratchy hair, and I like that he understood how she felt even before she told him. I don’t know if she was flirting with him, annoying him or just plain clueless when she ordered him to do it “harder.” hahaha. For sure, he understood the sexual connotation of saying “harder” while he was massaging her scalp. (wink wink)
Tidbit: Go Ara is 30 years old, and Lee JaeWook is 22 years old. They don’t look their age so the director/writer probably compromised and had them both as 24 years old.
Ah yes Clueless and the political correctness of it, so true. 😬
I thought Jun’s concern for RR is really something especially after seeing her on the floor and crying. He just held her up and took her out for a bike ride and washed her hair.
I don’t know which word to use whenever RR says to Jun to ‘add it to my tab’. 😂
I mean the word to describe what I think about her telling Jun add to my tab. 😁
If Jun is indeed chaebol, then his part-time is a learning experience for him too. I wonder what’s up with that rich lady who’s searching for him. Is she his mom or step-mom? And who owns his baseball cap? Is it his cap or his dead friend’s cap (the one in the columbarium)? It seems like it belongs to dead friend because the initials on the cap is JH. And the name of the deceased is Kim JiHun. He was born on May 10, 2002, and died on December 23, 2019. Wow! Two days before Christmas. (Ep 2, 24:23)
Anyway, I’m sure her cash flow problem will eventually be solved, but not before she learns a thing or two about life. This kdrama isn’t makjang.
Do you remember that the rich lady is MaGo from HDLN? ☺️
Yeah, I wonder whether she’s Jun’s Mom or Stepmom too. Thanks for the info on the friend at the columbarium. Jun is a hardworking man with so many jobs already and he still have time to take care of RR. ☺️
Yup, that cash problem will be solved but let’s see how. 😊
What word?
Crazy?
Unscrupulous?
Outrageous?
Marie Antoinette? 👑
😂
She is the MaGo in Hotel del Luna. Thanks! I was wondering why she looked familiar.
Jun was probably doing menial jobs because if he applied for a corporate job, commensurate to his skill level, he might be recognized or tracked down. His employers would have to deposit his paycheck electronically and he wanted cash only.
Ah that made it simple, crazy 😂 I go crazy whenever she says add it to my tab 😂
Yes, to not wanting to be traced but poor Jun with that 500k won stint. Lucky he was still able to come out from it. 😬
Hello hello, Packmule3, friends of Packmule3 and friends of mine! Took a break after Extraordinary You for about 5 months from Kdrama to solve the Voynich Manuscript. (Google it, it’s so weird.)
So I began procrastinating when I had to actually write the thing, and Netflix came up with DoDo and I actually had fun the first few eps. The girl was dumb but she can grow – love the Emma comparison! – and I liked the ML’s stoic adoration in the face of snot and bad eating habits, while not being a pushover. At least he protests!
Was there anything really stellar in the last few months, i.e, made your toes curl?? Chinese or Korean? I’m ready for some romance!
@Barbrey Welcome Back!! I was worried when you went AWOL. Especially since the last conversation we had here was about you flying overseas to visit your daughter. For me the humour in Zombie Detective is what’s keeping me happy. But if a nice rom com is up your alley then this one seems more appropriate.
I’m halfway through Ep 2, and liking this because it’s light watching! Agree with you @packmule with the Emma references, initially RR reminded me of Elle Woods in Legally Blond, with the lap dog in bag etc. Mimi is so cute!
Hi @Barbrey 👋🏻 Long time no see here ☺️ Glad you’re back and ready for some romance. 😁
There’s a lot of cdramas and kdramas out but Queen and a few of us here watched a dorama/jdrama called Love Lasts Forever. Packmule3 has done episode reviews of it so maybe read those and see if it will get you interested. 😊
Barbrey, is this really you??
I know why you dropped by. You couldn’t resist Lee JaeWook, right? Admit it!!! It’s okay. We can form the “Oldies-But-Goodies” Fan Club for LJW.
The “snot scene” made me grimace. Why on earth did the Male Lead Jun look at the snot on his hanky after he wiped her nose? He didn’t need to study it, for heaven’s sake. Just let her blow, then quickly fold the hanky.
Try “Dating in the Kitchen.” It’s a Chinese Drama and according to @agdr03, it finished very happily. I like the May-December pairing here. The guy’s mustache reminded me of Clark Gable. lol.
Wait, did you solve the Voynich Manuscript?!!!
In my sons’ high school, cryptography was offered as an alternative math class after the students finished AP Calculus BC. One of my sons decided he didn’t want to take Linear Algebra, and Multivariable while in high school (I couldn’t blame him), so he opted for the fun math class in his senior year, cryptography. He had a blast, and that class would later influence his choice of career. 🙂
Hi packmule3, hi everyone!
I’m new here and I will be following this drama! I’ve been watching a few heavy dramas recently and just wanted something lighthearted and this seems like it. Rara’s spoilt behaviour has me rolling my eyes so much they might just fall off, lol. But I really like Jun’s character and I’m sure she will grow so I’m here for it. KDramas stoic male leads usually come across as rather lifeless and stiff but Lee Jae Wook is doing a good job so far!
Apart from your observations in your ep1&2 article, another thing I’ve picked up is Rara’s cluelessness to male attention. The doctor is definitely interested in her and she’s either oblivious or playing dumb so she doesn’t have to reject his advances. And I think Jun already has interest in her, there were a few scenes in ep3 (I watched this at 10pm whilst waiting for laundry to dry so I can’t really remember specifics, lol) where she spoke about things and he seemed to be holding his breath like you do when the person you likes starts talking about their crush and you pray they say it’s you. Anyways Jun just comes across as SUPER aware of her and she’s just her jolly self.
Welcome to the blog, @Esst3. I woke up early today just to write a review of Ep 3. 😂 Hopefully I can get it out before I go to work today. If not, by tonight then.
Morning! 🌞
I’m about to watch it now. 😃
Morning! Emma…err, Rara is getting better here.
She has no intention of falling in love, she said, while she’s in this mess. So she’ll probably friend-zone Jun for now while Jun is falling in love with her. 😂
Poor Jun! 😂 But Emma err Rara made a good decision. She’s growing up already. 😎
Emma…errr, Rara 😂 will also become an Unnie to oppa-crazy, teenager HaYoung. With HY around, she has no choice but to “age” up. Rara acts self-centered because all her life, she was the center of the universe of her dad and piano teacher.
Should we just call Rara , Emma instead? 😂
HY is one Oppa crazy teenager 😁 But it looks like she’ll get close to Rara definitely. There’s the Parasite reference again. 😬
Awww the bike ride reminded me of Xiao Nai and Bei WeiWei ☺️
Heck no for the piggy back! 😂
Rara’s star is Jun. ☺️
“Parasite” is every Korean screenwriter’s mind, apparently. It’s the #aspirational drama. lol.
Wait, are you doing a running commentary? You want to do one of our Watch Threads right now?
Do you have time? I just found it cool that when Rara looked up to the sky and see’s the stars she thought of her Dad and then later Jun came in. ☺️
I don’t want to take you away from episode 3 review. 😄
Actually, you’ll save me from writing Episode 3 review.
Yes, I’ve till 9. It’s already 6:30 here. So two hours is enough??
Should be 😉 Got your coffee? 💁🏻♀️
I’m at 18:04 just after they check if Rara might hurt herself but she was really sleeping. Poor thing! 😂 Totally understandable that she’s stressed because she never earned money before.
Ya! When Jun smiles though. 🤩
Okay. Yes. Had my first cup. On my second already.
Will set up an Open Thread just for us, then. hahaha.
Bring it on 🙌🏻 For Emma err RaRa’s growth. 😂
Done. Let’s go to the other thread now.
Pleased you’re covering this drama, I’m finding it oddly compelling despite not being 100% into Rara (or the actress playing her). And Emma is my favourite Austen book, although I found Emma more likeable. And Cher in Clueless too, to be fair.
You mentioned the Box Hill party above. Box Hill is in my home town, which always made me feel particularly close to Emma. In contrast, I’ve never been to Ulsan, but DDSSLLS is making me want to visit, just like Shopping King Louis made me want to visit Busan (Dongbaek Island was just as good as it looked on TV).